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English to Chinese: 域陀.雅努高維治:從國際伙伴到竊國大盜 General field: Social Sciences Detailed field: Government / Politics
Source text - English Viktor Yanukovych: From partner to violent kleptocrat
Over the course of four years the international image of Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych has evolved from partner to violent kleptocrat.
U.S. and EU policymakers' views were shaped by wishful thinking rather than being based on hard intelligence. Links between Yanukovych, the Party of Regions and crime have been long known to policymakers as seen in U.S. cables from Kiev available through WikiLeaks.
At least 18 Party of Regions deputies have criminal ties, according to Hennadiy Moskal, deputy head of Parliament's Committee on Organized Crime and Corruption. Attitudes toward Ukraine's president evolved through four stages: wishful thinking (2010), thaw (2011), stagnation (2012)
and violent kleptocrat (2013).
The first stage -- wishful thinking -- dominated 2010, when Yanukovych became president in the last free election Ukraine has held with policymakers either believing he had changed under the influence of U.S. consultants or would be no different to President Leonid Kuchma (1994-2004). Policymakers reserved their criticism arguing Yanukovych needed to be given a chance to prove himself. Wishful thinking papered over democratic regression, the transformation of Parliament into a rubber-stamp institution, corruption of the constitutional court and local election fraud. It also sidestepped the first signs of selective justice against defeated opposition candidate and Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko.
The second stage -- thaw -- in 2011 began with Freedom House downgrading Ukraine from "Free" to "Partly Free."
Although Ukraine's democracy was being rolled back and opposition leaders persecuted, the European Union continued to negotiate with Ukraine for an Association Agreement and Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement. The European Union and United States condemned Tymoshenko's imprisonment in October. The European Union, in what could be only described as a slap on Yanukovych's wrist, postponed the initialing of the AA from December to the following March but continued to hope it would be signed in late 2012.
The third stage -- stagnation -- dominated 2012 with efforts to end selective use of justice. Yanukovych was only invited to one Western country -- Cyprus -- as he became internationally isolated. Additional criminal charges, including murder, were added against Tymoshenko, which didn't prevent the European Union from continuing to negotiate with Ukraine. Attacks on democratic rights and media freedom continued to escalate and Parliament adopted a highly controversial language law in July 2012 that raised Russian to the same level as Ukrainian.
Transparency International reported on rampant growth of corruption and emergence of "The Family," a new clan of presidential loyalists from Yanukovych's home region headed by his eldest son Oleksandr who, although a dentist by profession, entered the list of the Top 50 wealthiest people in Ukraine. In the former U.S.S.R., only four Central Asian countries had worse levels of corruption than Ukraine, TI said, while the Heritage Foundation ranked Ukraine with the least economic freedom in Europe.
The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, Council of Europe and Western governments criticized the November 2012 parliamentary elections as not meeting democratic standards. The fourth stage -- violent kleptocrat -- came into view in 2013 took a long time in coming because news was dominated by negotiations over the AA and whether Tymoshenko would be released or permitted to travel abroad for medical treatment.
Yuriy Lutsenko's release in April 2013 had been insufficient to satisfy U.S. and EU demands for an end to selective use of justice. Many believed Yanukovych's desire to enter history as the leader who would take Ukraine into Europe would outweigh his fear of Tymoshenko and she would be freed. At the end of November 2013 the Ukrainian government, without public consultation or warning, abruptly canceled European integration and locked Ukraine into a Russian loan agreement. Incompetent and corrupt policies by Party of Regions leader and Prime Minister Nikolai Azarov had taken Ukraine to bankruptcy.
The decision ended Western illusions about Yanukovych's commitment to Europe and most came to believe his choice of foreign policy partner was linked not to Ukrainian national interests but what would be best for his re-election the following year.
Russian loans with fewer conditions -- rather than unpopular reforms demanded by an International Monetary Fund agreement -- would be more likely to secure his re-election. The occupation of downtown Kiev and massive popular protests that reached 1 million people at its peak -- which remain on-going in freezing winter weather -- were also fuelled by four years of attacks on democracy and Ukrainian national identity and rapacious corruption.
Protests turned violent after "Black Thursday" (Jan. 16) when what was left of Ukraine's democracy was destroyed in the space of 21 minutes when the Party of Regions and Communists voted by an illegal show of hands rather than using the electronic system. Ukraine had become a dictatorship.
The image of Yanukovych and his administration dramatically changed to violent kleptocrat after a tally of seven dead (including an Armenian and Belarusian), 2,000 protesters wounded, 136 journalists attacked, 30 protesters kidnapped and 120 detained. This was reinforced by images of Automobile-Maydan leader Dmytro Bulatov who had been kidnapped and tortured in what Amnesty International described as a "barbaric act."
Over four years and stages U.S. and EU policymakers came to view Yanukovych as a violent and corrupt kleptocrat who
had no allegiance to European values. With Yanukovych now persona non grata in Europe and North America it is time for
the European Union to follow the United States and Canada in introducing targeted sanctions.
--
(Taras Kuzio is a research associate at the Center for Political and Regional Studies, Canadian Institute of Ukrainian
Studies, University of Alberta.)
Translation - Chinese 域陀.雅努高維治:從國際伙伴到竊國大盜
華盛頓二月十四日合眾國際社電---- 短短四年間烏克蘭總統域陀.雅努高維治(Victor Yanukovych) 在國際社會上的形象便從友善的伙伴墮落至一名運用國家機器及暴力集權斂財的竊國大盜。不論美國或者歐盟決策者對該名總統的評價不過建立於一廂情願的空想而非實實在在的情報上。實際上,雅努高維治與其領導的烏克蘭地區黨(Ukraine Party of Regions, Партія регіонів)所犯下的罪行,根據維基解碼所示,其實早被駐基輔的美國情報人員所知。根據烏克蘭國會反貪污及有組織犯罪調查委員會會長漢那迪.莫斯卡爾 (Hennadiy Moskal) 所指出,起碼十八名烏克蘭地區黨的議員與一系列的罪行有直接或間接關係。國外對雅努高維治總統的態度約略可以劃分為四階段: 一廂情願 (2010), 黴壞 (2011), 停滯 (2013), 以至嗜血集權掠財集團領導人(2013)。
在國際社會對烏克蘭充滿憧憬的2010年,當雅努高維治成爲烏克蘭最後一次自由選舉產生的總統的時候,國際社會或相信烏克蘭已經被美國顧問們改變,或至少相信情況不會比前總統里昂涅. 高治馬(Leonid Kuchma)領導的十年(1994-2004)更差。當年各國的決策者均對雅努高維治存有保留,並呼籲他應被公衆給與機會證明自己。國際社會一廂情願的憧憬掩蓋了烏克蘭去民主化的腳步,例如被削權後仿似橡皮圖章的國會,憲法法庭的腐敗及地區選舉造假等等的問題。同時,國際社會的一廂情願亦同時導致他們無視了前總理尤莉亞.戴莫申高(Yulia Tymoshenko) 在被執政政府選擇性司法對付的事實。
2011年國際社會對烏克蘭的態度進入第二階段:黴壞;該年伊始,國際性非政府組織自由之家 (The Freedom House) 便將烏克蘭降級從‘自由’至僅僅為‘局部自由’。縱使烏克蘭的民主制度正被侵蝕而反對派領袖正被逐一清理,歐盟依然繼續與基輔政府商討簽訂加入歐盟及深化自由貿易協議。歐盟及美國遲至十月方譴責戴莫申高入獄的事件。歐盟處理此事的手法僅僅是推遲開始與烏克蘭的經濟合作框架從該年十二月延至到翌年三月,但卻依然期待在2012年末落實簽訂協議。
代表‘停滯’的2012年充滿著國際社會嘗試終止烏克蘭政府選擇性執法的努力。雅努高維治在全年僅被邀請至一個西方國家,反映了他正被國際社會孤立。縱使如此,更多的控罪包括謀殺依然被加諸戴莫申高,但並未有阻止歐盟繼續與烏克蘭談判。與此同時,人民權利及媒體自由被攻擊的情況不僅繼續並且見有升級,而國會同時亦通過一項極具爭議的法案將俄語提升至與烏克蘭語地位同等。國際貪污監測組織《透明國際Transparency International》報告指出烏克蘭高速增長的貪污及烏克蘭出現了來自雅努高維治出生地區並由雅努高維治長子,報稱爲牙醫但卻同時為烏克蘭五十大最富有人士的奧力山大(Oleksandr Yanukovych) 所領導的保皇派利益集團。在前蘇聯解體國家中,透明國際的報道指,僅有四個中亞國家有比烏克蘭更嚴重的貪污情況,同時美國傳統基金會(the Heritage Foundation) 更把烏克蘭列爲歐洲最缺乏經濟自由的國度。歐洲安全與合作組織(Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe), 歐洲委員會 (Council of Europe) 及多個西方政府均批評烏克蘭2012年十一月的選舉並不符合民主價值及標準。
國際社會對烏克蘭總統的觀感終于在2013年,在歐盟在是否繼續與烏克蘭簽訂合作協議上舉棋不定及媒體對戴莫申高會否被容許保外就醫的懷疑中墜落至嗜血竊權者的程度。僅僅在2013年四月釋放戴莫申高盟友尤理. 盧申高 (Yuriy Lutsenko) 並未有為基輔政府解決美國及歐盟要求烏克蘭終止選擇性執法的要求。同時,國際間亦流傳雅努高維治期望作爲引領烏克蘭進入歐洲的領導者被載入史冊的狂想遠遠超過他對戴莫申高的忌憚,所以她遲早獲釋。但是,在2013年 十一月烏克蘭政府突兀地在沒有質詢公衆的情況下單方面中止與歐盟的談判並且同時與俄羅斯簽下貸款條約以紓緩烏克蘭政府在地區黨領袖及總理尼可拉. 阿澤洛伕(Nikolai Azarov) 無能及腐敗的政策下帶到的破產邊緣。此一決定切實地終止了西方世界對雅努高維治加入歐盟所僅餘的期望,並且多有相信他選擇俄羅斯作爲外交夥伴並不是為烏克蘭國家利益着想而僅僅是爲了個人於2014年大選鋪路。俄羅斯條件罕附的借貸而不是與國際貨幣基金組織協議借貸所必然帶來的苦澀改革將很大可能讓雅努高維治連任。
基輔市中心的佔領及示威最多曾有一百萬人參與,並且依然在烏克蘭凜冽的冬天持續,在烏克蘭人對四年以來民主制度及作爲烏克蘭人國民身份認知所受到的攻擊及廣泛的貪腐的憤怒中燃燒。烏克蘭所僅餘的民主制度在一個二十一分鐘的會議上被地區黨及共產黨以舉手示意取替正式電子投票的行動下摧毀;示威在同日‘黑色星期四’一月十六日轉變成暴力抗爭,烏克蘭成爲獨裁國家。
雅努高維治及其執政黨羽的形象在七名死難者(包括一位亞美尼亞籍及一位白俄羅斯籍人士),兩千名傷者,一百三十六名記者收到襲擊,三十名示威者被綁架及一百二十名示威者被拘捕後迅速轉變成獨裁膾子手。此一形象在‘汽車佔領廣場’(Automobile-Maydan)運動領袖保拉托伕被國際人權組織稱爲‘蠻族所為’的被綁架及虐待照片流出後更形鞏固。
四年的時間和四個階段方令美國及歐盟決策者認知到雅努高維治僅僅是一個與歐洲價值為敵的粗暴,腐敗的獨裁者。在雅努高維治已經成爲西方世界過街老鼠的今天,歐盟是時候跟隨美國及加拿大開始針對性制裁(編按:歐盟已於二月二十一日同意施行針對性制裁)。
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Years of experience: 10. Registered at ProZ.com: Nov 2016.